Right Place, Wrong Time
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character in this story, except Annette, and Dr. Taylor, the rest belong to the WB.
Rating: PG-13
Ephram had made it out of his room window with ease. He had never done it before, but it didn't bother him, even though he nearly slipped at first. He jumped down without making a sound, and ran straight for Chestnut.
It wasn't easy running at such a fast pace, because Ephram still felt absolutely horrible from flying into the river. He knew he would have to deal with it, and deal with it he did. He made it all the way to the bridge with Annette waiting for him. She smiled when he ran up right next to her.
"I didn't think you were going to make it." Annette was glad to see him.
"I didn't either. I almost fell off my roof, and nearly passed out three times on the way." Even with all Ephram said he was still smiling.
"Well let's get you back to my house and warm you up. You look freezing."
"That might be because I am." Ephram hugged himself to keep warm.
Annette had driven her car to the bridge, and for that Ephram was grateful. It had heat, and a good enough radio, so he was happy. They got to her house and went inside, Ephram was practically running.
"It isn't that cold out here!" Annette ran after him.
"That's easy for you to say! You didn't get tossed over a bridge by your bike...If you even have one." Ephram smiled and sat down on the couch.
"I'll turn up the heat so you'll be comfortable."
"Thanks."
Ephram sat patiently as Annette walked out of the room to the thermostat. She soon walked back into the room and asked, "Do you want anything to drink? I've got hot chocolate if you want it."
"No thanks, I'm not much of a cocoa drinker. I'm more of a coffee kind of guy." Annette knew he was joking, "I really don't want anything to drink right now."
"Ok, well, how are you doing? I mean, how is it going with you and your girlfriend?"
When the final word came out of Annette's mouth, Ephram thought back to earlier that day. He hated the thought of not being with Amy, she always knew how to make him smile, even when he thought he was at his lowest.
"Uh, we broke up earlier today." Ephram was playing with his fingers, not having anything else to twist around.
"Oh I'm sorry. Was it a mutual thing?"
Ephram sat thinking, and after a minute he spoke, "Heh, not really. She broke up with me because of the way I've been acting lately. She meant me hanging out with you, and not telling her why." Ephram looked up at Annette again, "I haven't told anyone why we are together so much."
Those words made Annette feel more comfortable. She didn't want anyone knowing what was going on with her, it didn't seem right for anyone to know, "Thanks, I appreciate that." She went and sat beside him.
"No problem." He knew he probably should have told somebody by now, because not all of the signs of Annette's suicidal thought had left. She was still vulnerable, and Ephram knew that. "This is going to sound really weird, but can I crash here for a few nights? I really don't want to go back home right now."
"Yeah, sure, that would be fine. I can make up the couch so you can sleep on it, or you can take my bed."
Ephram didn't want to intrude, and the couch sounded fine, "This is great," He patted the couch, "I don't like taking over other peoples thing, so the couch has my name on it."
"Okay." She walked out of the room once more and came back in with some sheets, a blanket, and two pillows, "I can't promise a great night's sleep, but it will have to do if you want to stay here."
"That's fine; I don't sleep well much anymore anyway." Ephram had been having bad nights these past few times, and tonight looked like it would be better than anything else he had had for awhile.
******
Annette and Ephram spent several hours talking about little things, nothing really important. Before either of them knew it, it was twelve fifty five. It was probably a good thing the next day was a Saturday.
They both made the couch up together, and when they were finished Ephram laid down. He was more tired than he thought he was, and so was Annette. He fell asleep right after he got settled, but Annette, for some reason, stayed and watched him sleep.
When he woke up the next morning she was still sitting in the chair, except she was asleep now. He smiled and quietly got off the couch. He walked into the kitchen, looked through her cabinets, and began making breakfast. He wanted to pay her back since she let him stay there for a few days.
He wasn't the best cook, but at least he didn't fill the house with smoke like his father usually did. Ephram wandered if Andy even realized his son was missing. 'Probably not,' Ephram thought, 'He doesn't care about me.'
But Ephram could help thinking back to just yesterday, when his father saved him from getting swept away in a rough current. Ephram could have been killed, but his dad saved him just in time.
"Ephram?" A voice made him jump. He turned and saw Annette standing in the doorway.
"Oh, hey Annette, I was just fixing breakfast, I hope you don't mind." He wasn't normally this uneasy around people, but something about Annette just made Ephram feel weird. It was a good weird, but still strange to him.
She sleepily walked further into the room, "Oh no, I don't mind. As long as you promise not to burn down the house it's fine." She sat at the table and yawned.
Ephram laughed a little, "No, I won't burn anything, except maybe the food."
"That's fine too." Annette was obviously still very tired.
"Go back to sleep, in your own bed. I just started breakfast so it won't be done for a while, I'll get you when it's finished." He didn't like people waiting on him.
"That sounds good to me." Annette said with a yawn. She got up and stumbled out of the room. Ephram couldn't help but smile.
******
Ephram and Annette spend the whole weekend like this. He always cooked the breakfast, and she always ate it, happily. She never heard from her parents, but at that point, she didn't really care. She and Ephram were getting a lot closer, and that made her happy.
Ephram still had that uneasy feeling about Annette, but he was learning to ignore it. He fell asleep early Sunday night, since he had to go to school the next day.
******
"Ephram, you need to get up." Ephram was woken up by a gentle shake.
"Five more minutes dad." Ephram rolled over, but when he did he fell off the couch, "Huh? I'm up, I'm up." He drowsily looked around the room and remembered where he was, "Oh, hey Annette."
"Hey." Annette looked at him with a little concern, "Are you okay? You look wiped."
"And it seems that I look like this to everyone." Ephram remembered other people saying that about him in the past, "I'm fine. I need to get to school though." He looked at the clock and it was 6:52, "I'm going to be late!"
He stood up and walked out the door, still wearing the same clothes he had been for the past three days. He realized this and walked back in, "You don't happen to have any clothes I could borrow, do you?"
"Actually, yeah, I do. My ex-boyfriend never got his clothes from my place, so I threw them in the closet. They might be a little big, but I think they're about your size."
They were almost perfect for Ephram, just a little baggy, just the way he liked his clothes. The only problem was, they weren't really his style. He would have to get over that, "Thanks, I owe you one." With that, Ephram ran out the door and headed for school. First period would be over by the time he got there.
******
Ephram walked into the school building just after the bell for second period rang, 'Good,' he thought, 'Nobody will know I'm late.'
He ran down the hall straight towards his chemistry class, his worst subject. That was one of the few classes he shared with Amy. He wasn't looking forward to seeing her again.
He walked in and, of course, there she was, staring at the door, waiting for him. But not for the normal reason, she looked very worried. About what Ephram was about to find out.
"Ephram," She walked up to him and talked in a quiet whisper, "Where have you been? Your dad called me Saturday and told me you were missing. He keeps calling my house and asking me if I've seen you. He's really upset."
Ephram knew he was about to get in over his head, and he might never get to talk to Amy again, "I can't tell you right now. I have to go sit down."
Ephram walked right past her and went to his seat. The day went on like this, and Ephram couldn't stand a single minute of it. He kept avoiding Amy, but she knew something he didn't.
She had called Dr. Brown. She knew where Ephram had been, because whenever he says, 'I can't tell you about it,' it means he's with Annette. During lunch she had called him, and he was not very happy.
School let out and Ephram left immediately. He walked right past Bright and his group of friends, which was one of his worst ideas yet.
"Hey dude, where are you going?" Bright grabbed Ephram by his sleeve, "And where did you get these clothes?" He laughed a little.
Ephram stood, looking like he was thinking about an answer, "None of your business, and someplace." He pulled himself away from Bright's grip and started walking again.
"Don't walk away from me," Bright grabbed him again, "I haven't finished with you yet." Bright gave Ephram a stern look and held him so he couldn't move or get away, "You broke my little sister's heart, and you're going to pay for that."
"Why should I pay for it? She broke up with me!" Ephram tried getting away, but it wasn't possible, Bright was too angry.
"She's still upset, and it's because of you!" Bright pushed Ephram to the ground, he landed with a nasty thud and the hard concrete.
"What's up with you, man? I didn't do anything!" Ephram struggled to his feet, only to be pushed down again.
"You aren't getting away so easy." Bright's buddies came up behind him and started smiling awkwardly at Ephram.
'This can't be good.' Ephram thought to himself, 'I've got to get out of here.' He attempted to get to his feet and run, but he couldn't stand up, he kept tripping over himself.
Bright laughed and said, "Get him."
Ephram tried once more to get up, and this time he succeeded. He started running, but didn't get very far. One of Bright's friends came up behind him and tackled him. He, once again, hit the ground hard.
Everything went fuzzy for a second, but after the first punch to his chest, Ephram could see straight. It knocked the wind out of him, and he couldn't regain his breath again for quite some time.
He received another blow to his stomach, and then to his jaw. Ephram kept trying to push them off, but it was like there were a million of them, they never stopped coming.
Finally a break came for Ephram. He could hear a girl screaming, telling them to stop. He looked up and saw Amy pushing everyone away from him. He just stayed on the ground, not caring to move. He hurt too much to go anywhere.
Amy ran back to Ephram and knelt down beside him, "Are you alright?" Now she looked more worried than ever.
"Depends on what alright is to you." Ephram looked at her and smiled, and then started to cough wildly.
"Ephram, we need to get you to a doctor, like your dad."
"No!" Ephram pushed Amy away, "No, I'm fine...I have to go." He stood up and started walking away. He stopped when Amy called after him.
"I still love you, Ephram!" He didn't turn around, he just kept walking. He was never going back to that school.
Hell, he was never going back home.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character in this story, except Annette, and Dr. Taylor, the rest belong to the WB.
Rating: PG-13
Ephram had made it out of his room window with ease. He had never done it before, but it didn't bother him, even though he nearly slipped at first. He jumped down without making a sound, and ran straight for Chestnut.
It wasn't easy running at such a fast pace, because Ephram still felt absolutely horrible from flying into the river. He knew he would have to deal with it, and deal with it he did. He made it all the way to the bridge with Annette waiting for him. She smiled when he ran up right next to her.
"I didn't think you were going to make it." Annette was glad to see him.
"I didn't either. I almost fell off my roof, and nearly passed out three times on the way." Even with all Ephram said he was still smiling.
"Well let's get you back to my house and warm you up. You look freezing."
"That might be because I am." Ephram hugged himself to keep warm.
Annette had driven her car to the bridge, and for that Ephram was grateful. It had heat, and a good enough radio, so he was happy. They got to her house and went inside, Ephram was practically running.
"It isn't that cold out here!" Annette ran after him.
"That's easy for you to say! You didn't get tossed over a bridge by your bike...If you even have one." Ephram smiled and sat down on the couch.
"I'll turn up the heat so you'll be comfortable."
"Thanks."
Ephram sat patiently as Annette walked out of the room to the thermostat. She soon walked back into the room and asked, "Do you want anything to drink? I've got hot chocolate if you want it."
"No thanks, I'm not much of a cocoa drinker. I'm more of a coffee kind of guy." Annette knew he was joking, "I really don't want anything to drink right now."
"Ok, well, how are you doing? I mean, how is it going with you and your girlfriend?"
When the final word came out of Annette's mouth, Ephram thought back to earlier that day. He hated the thought of not being with Amy, she always knew how to make him smile, even when he thought he was at his lowest.
"Uh, we broke up earlier today." Ephram was playing with his fingers, not having anything else to twist around.
"Oh I'm sorry. Was it a mutual thing?"
Ephram sat thinking, and after a minute he spoke, "Heh, not really. She broke up with me because of the way I've been acting lately. She meant me hanging out with you, and not telling her why." Ephram looked up at Annette again, "I haven't told anyone why we are together so much."
Those words made Annette feel more comfortable. She didn't want anyone knowing what was going on with her, it didn't seem right for anyone to know, "Thanks, I appreciate that." She went and sat beside him.
"No problem." He knew he probably should have told somebody by now, because not all of the signs of Annette's suicidal thought had left. She was still vulnerable, and Ephram knew that. "This is going to sound really weird, but can I crash here for a few nights? I really don't want to go back home right now."
"Yeah, sure, that would be fine. I can make up the couch so you can sleep on it, or you can take my bed."
Ephram didn't want to intrude, and the couch sounded fine, "This is great," He patted the couch, "I don't like taking over other peoples thing, so the couch has my name on it."
"Okay." She walked out of the room once more and came back in with some sheets, a blanket, and two pillows, "I can't promise a great night's sleep, but it will have to do if you want to stay here."
"That's fine; I don't sleep well much anymore anyway." Ephram had been having bad nights these past few times, and tonight looked like it would be better than anything else he had had for awhile.
******
Annette and Ephram spent several hours talking about little things, nothing really important. Before either of them knew it, it was twelve fifty five. It was probably a good thing the next day was a Saturday.
They both made the couch up together, and when they were finished Ephram laid down. He was more tired than he thought he was, and so was Annette. He fell asleep right after he got settled, but Annette, for some reason, stayed and watched him sleep.
When he woke up the next morning she was still sitting in the chair, except she was asleep now. He smiled and quietly got off the couch. He walked into the kitchen, looked through her cabinets, and began making breakfast. He wanted to pay her back since she let him stay there for a few days.
He wasn't the best cook, but at least he didn't fill the house with smoke like his father usually did. Ephram wandered if Andy even realized his son was missing. 'Probably not,' Ephram thought, 'He doesn't care about me.'
But Ephram could help thinking back to just yesterday, when his father saved him from getting swept away in a rough current. Ephram could have been killed, but his dad saved him just in time.
"Ephram?" A voice made him jump. He turned and saw Annette standing in the doorway.
"Oh, hey Annette, I was just fixing breakfast, I hope you don't mind." He wasn't normally this uneasy around people, but something about Annette just made Ephram feel weird. It was a good weird, but still strange to him.
She sleepily walked further into the room, "Oh no, I don't mind. As long as you promise not to burn down the house it's fine." She sat at the table and yawned.
Ephram laughed a little, "No, I won't burn anything, except maybe the food."
"That's fine too." Annette was obviously still very tired.
"Go back to sleep, in your own bed. I just started breakfast so it won't be done for a while, I'll get you when it's finished." He didn't like people waiting on him.
"That sounds good to me." Annette said with a yawn. She got up and stumbled out of the room. Ephram couldn't help but smile.
******
Ephram and Annette spend the whole weekend like this. He always cooked the breakfast, and she always ate it, happily. She never heard from her parents, but at that point, she didn't really care. She and Ephram were getting a lot closer, and that made her happy.
Ephram still had that uneasy feeling about Annette, but he was learning to ignore it. He fell asleep early Sunday night, since he had to go to school the next day.
******
"Ephram, you need to get up." Ephram was woken up by a gentle shake.
"Five more minutes dad." Ephram rolled over, but when he did he fell off the couch, "Huh? I'm up, I'm up." He drowsily looked around the room and remembered where he was, "Oh, hey Annette."
"Hey." Annette looked at him with a little concern, "Are you okay? You look wiped."
"And it seems that I look like this to everyone." Ephram remembered other people saying that about him in the past, "I'm fine. I need to get to school though." He looked at the clock and it was 6:52, "I'm going to be late!"
He stood up and walked out the door, still wearing the same clothes he had been for the past three days. He realized this and walked back in, "You don't happen to have any clothes I could borrow, do you?"
"Actually, yeah, I do. My ex-boyfriend never got his clothes from my place, so I threw them in the closet. They might be a little big, but I think they're about your size."
They were almost perfect for Ephram, just a little baggy, just the way he liked his clothes. The only problem was, they weren't really his style. He would have to get over that, "Thanks, I owe you one." With that, Ephram ran out the door and headed for school. First period would be over by the time he got there.
******
Ephram walked into the school building just after the bell for second period rang, 'Good,' he thought, 'Nobody will know I'm late.'
He ran down the hall straight towards his chemistry class, his worst subject. That was one of the few classes he shared with Amy. He wasn't looking forward to seeing her again.
He walked in and, of course, there she was, staring at the door, waiting for him. But not for the normal reason, she looked very worried. About what Ephram was about to find out.
"Ephram," She walked up to him and talked in a quiet whisper, "Where have you been? Your dad called me Saturday and told me you were missing. He keeps calling my house and asking me if I've seen you. He's really upset."
Ephram knew he was about to get in over his head, and he might never get to talk to Amy again, "I can't tell you right now. I have to go sit down."
Ephram walked right past her and went to his seat. The day went on like this, and Ephram couldn't stand a single minute of it. He kept avoiding Amy, but she knew something he didn't.
She had called Dr. Brown. She knew where Ephram had been, because whenever he says, 'I can't tell you about it,' it means he's with Annette. During lunch she had called him, and he was not very happy.
School let out and Ephram left immediately. He walked right past Bright and his group of friends, which was one of his worst ideas yet.
"Hey dude, where are you going?" Bright grabbed Ephram by his sleeve, "And where did you get these clothes?" He laughed a little.
Ephram stood, looking like he was thinking about an answer, "None of your business, and someplace." He pulled himself away from Bright's grip and started walking again.
"Don't walk away from me," Bright grabbed him again, "I haven't finished with you yet." Bright gave Ephram a stern look and held him so he couldn't move or get away, "You broke my little sister's heart, and you're going to pay for that."
"Why should I pay for it? She broke up with me!" Ephram tried getting away, but it wasn't possible, Bright was too angry.
"She's still upset, and it's because of you!" Bright pushed Ephram to the ground, he landed with a nasty thud and the hard concrete.
"What's up with you, man? I didn't do anything!" Ephram struggled to his feet, only to be pushed down again.
"You aren't getting away so easy." Bright's buddies came up behind him and started smiling awkwardly at Ephram.
'This can't be good.' Ephram thought to himself, 'I've got to get out of here.' He attempted to get to his feet and run, but he couldn't stand up, he kept tripping over himself.
Bright laughed and said, "Get him."
Ephram tried once more to get up, and this time he succeeded. He started running, but didn't get very far. One of Bright's friends came up behind him and tackled him. He, once again, hit the ground hard.
Everything went fuzzy for a second, but after the first punch to his chest, Ephram could see straight. It knocked the wind out of him, and he couldn't regain his breath again for quite some time.
He received another blow to his stomach, and then to his jaw. Ephram kept trying to push them off, but it was like there were a million of them, they never stopped coming.
Finally a break came for Ephram. He could hear a girl screaming, telling them to stop. He looked up and saw Amy pushing everyone away from him. He just stayed on the ground, not caring to move. He hurt too much to go anywhere.
Amy ran back to Ephram and knelt down beside him, "Are you alright?" Now she looked more worried than ever.
"Depends on what alright is to you." Ephram looked at her and smiled, and then started to cough wildly.
"Ephram, we need to get you to a doctor, like your dad."
"No!" Ephram pushed Amy away, "No, I'm fine...I have to go." He stood up and started walking away. He stopped when Amy called after him.
"I still love you, Ephram!" He didn't turn around, he just kept walking. He was never going back to that school.
Hell, he was never going back home.